Snowmaking social media star Brian Hughes is leaving Killington

Brian Hughes helped Killington serve up some of the top conditions in the East. (Killington Mountain Resort)

The groovy people will no longer find Brian Hughes at Killington Mountain Resort.

The snowmaker/groomer, who created a popular social media presence with his enlightening morning condition reports, confirmed last week that, after working at Killington for nearly 30 years, he will be leaving the resort for a new opportunity elsewhere in Vermont. 

In an interview with local podcaster Victoria Gaither, Hughes said he was looking to “scale down” after spending half of his life at the self-proclaimed “Beast of the East.” At Killington, Hughes was dealing with a snowmaking system that can pump 10 million gallons of water to more than 250 snow guns capable of blanketing 600 acres with a foot of snow in 24 hours.

Hughes said that he would continue doing his morning snow reports at another mountain in Vermont, but did not reveal where he might be headed. 

“I will continue to do this,” Hughes told Gaither. “I will continue to do this job. It’s basically all I know.

“I’ve been at a gigantic mountain for so long, I would like to go smaller. That’s all. Still doing the same job, but just smaller.” 

Hughes, who left his hometown of San Diego for Vermont nearly three decades ago, had never even seen snow until he arrived in the Green Mountain State. He began shooting his own videos in 2019 and, since then, has amassed a healthy amount of followers on his Instagram (@brianhughes6522,) and Facebook (@Brian Hughes) accounts.  

His daily greeting, “Good morning groovy people! Good morning Sugar Pop!” has become synonymous with his name in Killington, where Hughes’ social media presence has made him something of a local celebrity in the community. 

“Entertainer, snowmaker, I don’t know. I don’t think they have a label for it,” Hughes said about his daily videos, while also professing his passion for making snow. “I would call it like a really good disease. It gets into your blood, it gets into your soul.” 

Hughes said that he has adopted Vermont as his home (“I plan on being buried here,” he said) and will be headed elsewhere within the state with a piece of the Beast still in his heart.  

“Killington is and always be my home,” he said. “Killington is in my heart. We have like a brotherhood there. We’re actually family.” 

You can listen to the full, 50-minute podcast here.

Eric Wilbur can be reached at [email protected].